I was away this weekend at the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance conference. I attended a wonderful workshop with Oscar Brand, Gene Shay of WXPN in Philadelphia and Rich Warren of WFMT in Chicago. The topic of the workshop was censorship.   In regards to radio adn television, one of the items I took away from the workshop was how 1 letter of complaint can taint or destroy. Even if the complaint has no validity, the PERCEPTION can become reality.

The point I'm trying to make is that there is a lot of interpreting of SOME elements of rap music, but to read some of the posts here one would think that this music is completely destructive. Most of you (myself included) claim to not listen or like the music, but are also quick to point out what a terrible influence this music is.   In realty you've probably read or watched a news report about a murdered rap star or looked up Eminem's lyrics.   That is snapshot of segment of rap music, it is not the entire genre. It is NOT what MTV is presenting on a daily basis.

Remember how the Weaver's were blacklisted, how it took decades for Woody Guthrie's hometown to RECOGNIZE that he was born there, how people burned Beatles albums and Catcher in the Rye, how the Nazis outlawed music, and how government and commercial interests dictate what we listen to today.   

Do you have to like the music? Of course not, I don't care for it either. Is gangsta rap healthy? No, but the answer is to provide an alternative and educate. I think rap is doing that in it's own house.   Not all rap is destructive, much of it is empowering. It's all well and good to air ones opinion here, but make sure it is thought out and researched and you have a solution, not just a complaint.

Ron